How to publish a research paper
How to publish a research paper
Research papers are only as useful as their audience in the scientific community is wide. To reach that audience, a paper needs to pass the peer review process of an academic journal. However, the idea of having research published in peer-reviewed journals may seem daunting to newer researchers, so it’s important to provide a guide on how an academic journal looks at your research paper as well as how to determine what is the right journal for your research.
In simple terms, a research article is good if it is accepted as credible and rigorous by the scientific community. A study that isn’t seen as a valid contribution to scientific knowledge shouldn’t be published; ultimately, it is up to peers within the field in which the study is being considered to determine the study’s value. In established academic research, this determination is manifest in the peer review process. Journal editors at a peer-reviewed journal assign papers to reviewers who will determine the credibility of the research. A peer-reviewed article that completed this process and is published in a reputable journal can be seen as credible with novel research that can make a profound contribution to scientific knowledge.
The process of research publication
The process has been codified and standardized within the scholarly community to include three main stages. These stages include the initial submission stage where the editor reviews the relevance of the paper, the review stage where experts in your field offer feedback, and, if reviewers approve your paper, the copyediting stage where you work with the journal to prepare the paper for inclusion in their journal.
Publishing a research paper may seem like an opaque process where those involved with academic journals make arbitrary decisions about the worthiness of research manuscripts. In reality, reputable publications assign a rubric or a set of guidelines that reviewers need to keep in mind when they review a submission. These guidelines will most likely differ depending on the journal, but they fall into a number of typical categories that are applicable regardless of the research area or the type of methods employed in a research study, including the strength of the literature review, rigor in research methodology, and novelty of findings.
Choosing the right journal isn’t simply a matter of which journal is the most famous or has the broadest reach. Many universities keep lists of prominent journals where graduate students and faculty members should publish a research paper, but oftentimes this list is determined by a journal’s impact factor and their inclusion in major academic databases.
